15 Facts About Divorce Every Couple Should Know Before Getting Married

More relationships end in divorce these days than ever before. Divorce has a major impact on families, children, and society as a whole. Before you get married (or divorced), you should look at the strange statistics regarding this major decision.

1.) There are 100 divorces every hour in the U.S.

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2.) A third of all U.S. divorce filings in 2011 contained the word “Facebook.”

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3.) Couples who live together before engagement have higher divorce rates than those who wait.

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4.) First marriages ending in divorce usually last approximately 8 years.

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5.) People enduring more than a 45 minute commute are 40% more likely to divorce.

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6.) According to U.S. statistics, if one partner smokes, a marriage is 75% more likely to end in divorce.

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7.) The average length of divorce proceedings in the United States is 1 year.

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8.) Marriages are likely to last longer when people marry at an older age, have a higher education, and earn more money.

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9.) 75% of people who marry partners from an affair eventually divorce that person.

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10.) Among the occupations with the lowest divorce rates are agricultural engineers, salespeople, nuclear engineers, optometrists, clergy, and podiatrists.

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11.) The world’s most expensive divorce was estimated at $2.5 billion.

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12.) Children of divorced parents are twice as likely to drop out of high school and less likely to attend college.

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13.) A Bosnian couple divorced after discovering both had an online affair with each other under fake names.

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14.) No U.S. president has been elected after being divorced except for Ronald Reagan.

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15.) The average divorce takes almost 18 months to get over the split.

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The concept of marriage may be risky (and it might not last a lifetime), but arming yourself with knowledge is the best thing you can do before making the leap.